A defendant in the Proud Boys seditious conspiracy case lashed out at prosecutors from the witness stand on Thursday, attacking them for conducting what he described as a “corrupt trial” marred by “fake charges.”The outburst by the defendant, Dominic Pezzola, came during testimony that was meant to humanize him for the jury but seemed instead to expose his combative nature. In a tense back-and-forth with a prosecutor, Mr. Pezzola — who was among the first rioters to enter the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — also sought to play down the violence of that day, saying that the crowd that forced its way into the building was not “an invading force,” but merely “trespassing protesters.”The angry testimony emerged as the trial — now in its fourth month in Federal District Court in Washington — was finally winding down. Each of the defendants rested as the day came to an end on Thursday. Closing arguments could begin as early as Friday. A former Marine and a veteran boxer, Mr. Pezzola first took the witness stand on Tuesday, telling the jury that he wanted to testify — always a risky gamble — “to take responsibility for my actions on Jan. 6.”

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